what the....

I love spin and when I was at 24 hour fitness taking classes I dropped weight like crazy.. I would burn 1100+ cals per hour.

can you post a link to the article?

when you distill it all down if you use more energy than you eat you will lose weight

I've also done spinning, and that sounds completely ridiculous. Spinning's one of the best workouts I've gotten doing one activity, and I love an intense workout. stay with it!!!! Maybe they were trying to hook people in by negating to say that it will act to build leg muscle, therefore resulting in your numbers not being as low because you're gaining muscle.

Well if I had a pic of my husband uncle I could prove it is not a waste of time. He used to be over 300 lbs and between ridding bike/spinning in the winter months and hiking/walking he is now about 175ish maybe less and now it is nothing for him to do 30 miles+ during bike races.

Not sure if that is a reliable source- but as an AFAA certified Group Exercise instructor, I can tell you that spin is a GREAT workout and endorsed by AFAA, ACSM, ACE, and many other credible sports training institutions. If you have found a program that you love- keep doing it!!

I wish I knew how to post links but the name of the article is: He S.A.I.D, She S.A.I.D: Why Spinning won't make you slim... The website is Graeme Thomas Online.

Ah, as in the opinion of one person, Graeme Thomas. I wouldn't put much stock in that.

As long as you're pushing yourself, you will see improvement

Yes, keep at it. We have a guy in our class who only does spinning for exercise (due to surgeries and injuries). He's lost 40 pounds in about 6 months. I think he's changed his eating habits as well.

Also, one of our teachers was written about in People magazine's 1/2 your size issue. She lost 200 pounds and I know spinning is her preferred form of cardio!

If you're out of breath and sweating buckets, then it's worth it.

I spin 3 days a week and it is the ONLY cardio workout besides running that gets my heart rate really up there and burns any significant amount of calories. I burn between 400-475 calories for a 45 minute class per my HRM depending on the ride profile and that's not chump change! If you like it, keep doing it!

What?! If you are working hard, getting your HR up and burning cals, why would it be a waste of time? I spin once a week and have been for years, and it STILL kicks my *kitten* every time! I didn't have a significant amount of weight to lose and I do it in combination with a lot of running and strength training, so I can't pinpoint Spinning to weight loss, but if you do it with other workouts and pay attention to your diet, I'm certain it is effective for weight loss. Plus, if you love it, you should do it. That's how you'll stick at it!

I thought I should give my 2 cents here on this topic of Spinning being a waste of time. My thoughts come from the fact that I do triathlons but began my physical fitness with Spinning and then took up running, road cycling and triathlons. So, I think I have a good amount of experience on this topic.

I did read the article that you referenced in your post. And I think it's a good idea to just look at what he is saying with a bit of perspective. I would tend to agree with the article author that you can't rely completely upon Spinning for your cardio. Over time your body will adjust to the routine of this activity and become much more efficient. Therefore, the effort that is required will be less and, thus, the calorie burn will be less. Also, I can tell you that he is absolutely right about the fact that running does burn more calories because it's harder strictly because of the fact that you are using your own body to support and move your own weight versus having some support from the spin bike. And, there is also a huge difference between spin cycling/indoor cycling and road cycling. I do both and I'm here to tell ya, they are not at all the same. In fact, I stopped using Spinning to replace times that I could not ride on the road and instead purchased a bike trainer so that I could ride my road bike inside. And that only comes somewhat close to actually cycling outside.

Now with all of that said I really and truly think that the main point that you should take from his article is that it will be more effective if you mix up your cardio and try to do a little of everything. I would not say to cut out Spinning completely. Particularly for those individuals who are new to exercise and/or who may be very overweight, Spinning is a safe and effective way to get moving and to get used to what it feels like to exert oneself, etc. But, as you lose weight and become more fit, adding in some other activities like running will be a huge boost to calorie burn.

So I would say to get the best calorie burn and overall physical training and fitness toward achievement of your goals, I would suggest that you do a variety of cardio activities.

Just a few thoughts. Hope this helps!
Diane

you're doing a solid cardio. that's a good burn! i can only hope that they meant that you need to add some strength training in there. but for cardio - this is one of the best workouts out there. i call BUNKUM!